galactic evolution – Astronomy Now

SOFIA opens a surprising window on quasars and galactic evolution

30 November 2020 Astronomy Now

Researchers using the airborne SOFIA infrared observatory have found a quasar where star formation has managed to continue despite a torrent of radiation.

Growing up fast in the very early universe

27 October 2020 Astronomy Now

A survey of 118 young galaxies found many at a more mature stage in their evolution than astronomers were expecting

Globular cluster’s remnants suggest a ‘lost generation’

30 July 2020 Astronomy Now

Astronomers find a spread-out stream of stars that may be the remnant of a lost generation of globular clusters.

How to ‘seed’ supermassive black holes in the early universe

24 March 2020 Astronomy Now

Researchers in Italy have come up with a testable explanation for how supermassive black holes were able to grow so fast in the early universe.

‘Godzilla’ galaxy, one of largest observed, hosts a trillion suns

6 January 2020 Astronomy Now

The Hubble Space Telescope is helping astronomers study one of the largest spiral galaxies yet found, a “Godzilla” galaxy hosting a trillion stars.

Tracking a star’s movement by measuring its age and chemistry

16 September 2018 Astronomy Now

By measuring a star’s age and chemical makeup, astronomers can determine where a sun originated in the galactic disk before migrating outward. The Sun, it turns out, likely formed about 2,000 light years closer to the Milky Way’s core.

Fierce molecular winds slow runaway starbirth in early galaxy

6 September 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have detected a powerful molecular wind being blasted away from a starburst galaxy in the early universe, the earliest example yet of a mechanism thought to prevent galaxies from growing too large too fast.

Supercomputer simulation reverse engineers star cluster formation

27 June 2018 Astronomy Now

Supercomputer simulations show star clusters, regardless of size, form in the same way, starting with a dense cloud of interstellar gas and shaped over several million years by gravity, turbulence and radiation pressure

Supermassive black holes squelch star formation in ancient galaxies

23 June 2018 Astronomy Now

Observations by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory of two five-billion-solar-mass black holes at the cores of two ancient ‘red nugget’ galaxies show they squelched star formation early on while consuming surrounding gas.

Edge-on view highlights galaxy’s dust lanes, hides spiral structure

18 May 2018 Astronomy Now

As seen from Earth, galaxies can appear in any number of orientations, from face on, with spiral arms on glorious display, to edge on, with the arms hidden from view behind a flattened plane of stars and dust. While not as spectacular, perhaps, edge-on views provide key insights into galactic structure.